Highlights

  • Report / Paper / Summary
    4
    December
    2025
    Artificial Intelligence comes with both benefits and risks. Safe AI use that accounts for fundamental rights is thus crucial. While the 2024 EU AI Act was a milestone in this regard, its broad definitions regarding AI systems and high-risk AI could introduce loopholes for fundamental rights compliance. This report offers an empirical basis for much-needed practical guidance on the Act’s implementation. Based on interviews with AI developers, sellers, and users, FRA addresses challenges of its use in critical domains, like asylum, education, and employment. Our findings help guide next steps in realising the AI Act’s potential to ensure responsible innovation.
  • Report / Paper / Summary
    24
    May
    2023
    This report provides a partial update on the findings of the 2017 European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) report Surveillance by intelligence services: Fundamental rights safeguards and remedies in the EU. It was prepared at the request of the European Parliament, which asked FRA to update its 2017 findings to support the work of its committee of inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA).
  • Report / Paper / Summary
    8
    December
    2022
    Artificial intelligence is everywhere and affects everyone – from deciding what content people see on their social media feeds to determining who will receive state benefits. AI technologies are typically based on algorithms that make predictions to support or even fully automate decision-making.
  • Handbook / Guide / Manual
    25
    May
    2018
    Il rapido sviluppo delle tecnologie informatiche ha esacerbato la necessità di una rigorosa protezione dei dati personali, il diritto alla quale è tutelato sia dall’Unione europea (UE), sia dal Consiglio d’Europa (CdE). Salvaguardare questo importante diritto comporta nuove e importanti sfide, poiché i progressi tecnologici espandono le frontiere di settori come la sorveglianza, l’intercettazione delle comunicazioni e l’archiviazione dei dati.
    Prodotti
    Automation and AI have radically transformed how we work, live and play. In this video, Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, Michael O'Flaherty, discusses the implications of AI for our most basic of human rights.
    16
    September
    2022
    Europe stands at a delicate moment in its history, facing a convergence of major tests. Each of them taken on their own is significant. Together, they pose profound questions about the political, economic, and societal future of the continent. This is a moment for strong commitment to put human rights at the heart of our vision for Europe’s future. It is also time to demonstrate our determination to work together to this end. Against this backdrop, the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) brought together around sixty human rights leaders and experts from across the continent to discuss elements of a human rights vision for the future and to identify opportunities for action. A full conference report will be available soon, including the specific ideas and proposals which arose from the meeting. Meanwhile, this is a summary of the conclusions.
    8
    June
    2022
    FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2022 reviews major developments in the field in 2021, identifying both achievements and areas of concern. It also presents FRA’s opinions on these developments, including a synopsis of the evidence supporting these opinions.
    8
    June
    2022
    This focus looks at the impact of the pandemic on social rights. It examines the measures in national recovery and resilience plans that address the social vulnerabilities among a variety of population groups in the EU, including women, children and young people in situations of vulnerability, people with disabilities, older people, Roma and people in precarious working conditions.
    8
    June
    2022
    Il 2021 è stato caratterizzato sia da progressi sia da battute d’arresto in termini di tutela dei diritti fondamentali. La Relazione sui diritti fondamentali 2022 dell’Agenzia dell’Unione europea per i diritti fondamentali (FRA) fa il punto della situazione sui principali sviluppi in materia, individuando i risultati ottenuti e i settori che destano ancora preoccupazione. Questa pubblicazione presenta i pareri della FRA sui principali sviluppi nelle aree tematiche contemplate nonché una sintesi delle informazioni su cui si fondano tali pareri, tracciando in tal modo un quadro sintetico, ma informativo, delle principali sfide con cui si confrontano l’UE e gli Stati membri nell’ambito dei diritti fondamentali.
    7
    April
    2022
    Printed copies now available for order
    13 April 2022
    I minori sono titolari di diritti a pieno titolo. Sono beneficiari di tutti i diritti umani e fondamentali nonché oggetto di regolamenti speciali, in virtù delle loro caratteristiche specifiche. Il presente manuale si prefigge lo scopo di illustrare in che modo il diritto e la giurisprudenza europei tengono conto degli interessi e delle esigenze specifici dei minori. Evidenzia altresì l’importanza del ruolo svolto dai genitori e dai tutori o da altri rappresentanti legali e fa riferimento, ove opportuno, alle situazioni in cui diritti e responsabilità sono conferiti prevalentemente alle persone che si prendono cura dei minori. Il manuale mira a sensibilizzare e migliorare le conoscenze delle norme di legge che proteggono e promuovono questi diritti in Europa. Esso rappresenta un punto di riferimento per quanto concerne sia il diritto dell’Unione europea (UE) sia il diritto del Consiglio d’Europa (CdE) in materia e illustra come ciascun tema sia disciplinato dal diritto dell’UE, compresa la Carta dei diritti fondamentali dell’Unione europea, oltre che dalla Convenzione europea dei diritti dell’uomo, dalla Carta sociale europea e da altri strumenti del Consiglio d’Europa.
    The Fundamental Rights Forum 2021 was the space for dialogue on the human rights challenges facing the EU today. In this video, participants talk about the challenges of fundamental rights in the digital age.
    In this vlog, FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty points to the urgent need to tackle disinformation. He provides examples of what can be done to combat disinformation, including what the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights could contribute to this challenge.
    10
    June
    2021
    Il 2020 è stato caratterizzato sia da progressi
    sia da battute d’arresto in termini di tutela dei
    diritti fondamentali. La Relazione sui diritti
    fondamentali 2021 dell’Agenzia dell’Unione
    europea per i diritti fondamentali (FRA) fa il punto
    della situazione sui principali sviluppi in materia,
    individuando i risultati ottenuti e i settori che destano
    ancora preoccupazione.
    10
    June
    2021
    FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2021 reviews major developments in the field in 2020, identifying both achievements and areas of concern. It also presents FRA’s opinions on these developments, including a synopsis of the evidence supporting these opinions. This year’s focus chapter explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on fundamental rights. The remaining chapters cover: the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights; equality and non-discrimination; racism, xenophobia and related intolerance; Roma equality and inclusion; asylum, borders and migration; information society, privacy and data protection; rights of the child; access to justice; and the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
    10
    June
    2021
    This focus looks at COVID-19’s impact on fundamental rights. It underscores that a human rights-based approach to tackling the pandemic requires balanced measures that are based on law, necessary, temporary and proportional. It also requires addressing the pandemic’s socio-economic impact, protecting the vulnerable and fighting racism.
    The COVID-19 pandemic has an impact on everyone. Governments take urgent measures to curb its spread to safeguard public health and provide medical care to those who need it. They are acting to defend the human rights of health and of life itself. Inevitably, these measures limit our human and fundamental rights to an extent rarely experienced in peacetime. It is important to ensure that such limitations are consistent with our legal safeguards and that their impact on particular groups is adequately taken account of.
    Artificial intelligence (AI) already plays a role in many decisions that affect our daily lives. From deciding what unemployment benefits someone gets to where a burglary is likely to take place. But we need to make sure to fully uphold fundamental rights standards when using AI. Drawing on the ‘Getting the future right – Artificial intelligence and fundamental rights’ report, FRA explores the potential benefits and possible errors that can occur focusing on four core areas – social benefits, predictive policing, health services and targeted advertising.
    29
    January
    2021
    La relazione della FRA sull’intelligenza artificiale e i diritti fondamentali presenta esempi concreti di come le aziende e le pubbliche amministrazioni dell’UE utilizzano, o cercano di utilizzare, l’intelligenza artificiale. Si concentra su quattro ambiti fondamentali: prestazioni sociali, polizia predittiva, servizi sanitari e pubblicità mirata. La relazione esamina le potenziali implicazioni per i diritti fondamentali e analizza in che modo tali diritti sono presi in considerazione quando si utilizzano o si sviluppano applicazioni di IA.
    Artificial intelligence (AI) already plays a role in many decisions that affect our daily lives. From deciding what unemployment benefits someone gets to where a burglary is likely to take place. But we need to make sure to fully uphold fundamental rights standards when using AI. Drawing on the ‘Getting the future right – Artificial intelligence and fundamental rights’ report, FRA presents a number of key considerations to help businesses and administrations respect fundamental rights when using AI.
    This is a recording from the morning session of the high-level virtual event "Doing Artificial Intelligence the European way" which took place on 14 December 2020.
    This is a recording from the afternoon session of the high-level virtual event "Doing Artificial Intelligence the European way" which took place on 14 December 2020.
    Artificial intelligence is here. It’s not going away. It can be a force for good, but it needs to be watched so carefully in terms of respect for our human fundamental rights. The EU Fundamental Rights Agency is deeply committed to this work.Our ambition is not just to ensure that AI respects our rights, but also that it protects and promotes them.
    Will AI revolutionise the delivery of our public services? And what's the right balance? How is the private sector using AI to automate decisions — and what implications
    might that have? Are some form of binding rules necessary to monitor and regulate the use of AI technology - and what should these rules look like?
    How do we embrace progress while protecting our fundamental rights? As data-driven decision making increasingly touches our daily lives, what does this mean
    for our fundamental rights? A step into the dark? Or the next giant leap? The time to answer these questions is here and now. Let’s seize the opportunities, but understand the challenges. Let’s make AI work for everyone in Europe…And get the future right.